Reporter's Notebook: American Airlines canceled 127 O'Hare flights in September

Loose seats, pilots union disputes cause headaches for AMR Corp.

October 05, 2012|By Gregory Karp, Chicago Tribune reporter

American Airlines planes sit on the tarmac Sept. 25 at Miami International Airport. The airline blames recent delays and cancellations on a surge in pilot sick days and maintenance write-ups by pilots. (Joe Raedle, Getty Images)

Embattled American Airlines canceled 127 flights from O'Hare International Airport during September, far more than any other airline, and 37 percent of its departures were delayed during the month, according to data from FlightStats.com.

The delays and cancellations may continue through Friday as the airline temporarily grounds 48 planes to make sure no more seats come loose.

AMR Corp.-owned American Airlines, the No. 2 carrier out of Chicago, has been struggling with rampant delays and cancellations in recent weeks as it feuds with its pilots union and deals with a public relations crisis after several of its planes' passenger seats came loose from the floor of the cabin.

Other major airlines were on time from Chicago airports much more often, including United Airlines out of O'Hare at 76 percent and Southwest Airlines out of Midway at 84 percent. American's on-time rate was 63 percent, according to FlightStats. AMR's regional flights service, American Eagle, posted an on-time rate of 87 percent.

American canceled 127, or 2.9 percent, of its flights out of O'Hare during September. The next highest was ExpressJet Airlines, with 51 cancellations, or 0.86 percent, out of O'Hare. More recent data show American's operational problems have abated in recent days.

AMR, which is in bankruptcy protection, blames the operational failures on a labor dispute with its pilots, who the airline claims are calling in sick more and filing more maintenance reports, which holds up flights because the problems must be addressed before takeoff.

The pilots union, the Allied Pilots Association, said it has not sponsored a coordinated effort to harm the airline and that the write-ups are increasing because American isn't adequately maintaining its aging fleet. Pilots also have denied organizing a sick-out and dispute that pilots are using any more sick time than usual.

AMR severely cut pilot wages and benefits recently. The two sides returned to the negotiating table this week.

American Airlines also garnered national attention recently when seats on three of its Boeing 757 planes came loose during flights. After investigating, American said improperly installed clamps caused seats to pop loose on those planes. American later found several other planes with the same problem.

American said late Thursday that it is taking additional steps to prevent the same type of seats on its other 757s from becoming dislodged. That work involves enhancing the "locking mechanism features" used to secure seats to the aircraft floor.

The work is expected to be completed after the aircraft land at their next destination, the airline said about 5 p.m. Thursday.

"Some select flights may be delayed or canceled in order to complete this work. We expect this work will be completed by Saturday, Oct 6. We apologize to our customers for any inconvenience this may cause with their travel plans."

In other recent airline news:

TWU layoffs reduced: Layoffs of American Airlines mechanics and ground workers have been reduced by about 80 percent, as many took early retirements and severance packages, the Transport Workers Union said Thursday. AMR Corp., parent of American Airlines, originally slated 8,650 layoffs in March, but through negotiations that has been reduced to 1,800, the TWU said in a statement.

About 2,000 mechanics and ground workers work at Chicago O'Hare, Union officials have said it's impossible to say yet how many of the layoffs would happen in Chicago because of union bumping rules, which allow workers in eliminated positions to take posts of those with less seniority in other locations around the country.

United celebrates on-time record: United Airlines, which has been struggling since spring with the poorest on-time performance among major airlines, turned that around in September, posting an on-time arrival rate of 82 percent systemwide, the airline said.

Because it exceeded its goal of 80 percent, it will reward employees, excluding middle- and upper-management, with a $50 bonus. The last on-time bonus was paid in May for performance in April, a spokeswoman said.

The ultradiscount airline offers departures from O'Hare at 8:35 p.m. to arrive in Houston at 11:19 p.m., with return flights at 6:15 a.m. from Houston. Spirit is known for low base fares but charging for all extras, including carry-on bags.

Spirit made news earlier this week by announcing it would start charging $100 for carry-ons if passengers wait until they get to the boarding gate to pay the fee. They can instead pay $25 to $50 in advance or $20 to $45 to check the bag. Prices vary depending on whether passengers are a member of the airline's loyalty program and whether they pay the fee online, by phone or at the airport ticket counter or kiosk.

Chicago firm offers ways to earn, spend United miles: BCKSTGR of Chicago said this week it has an agreement with MileagePlus, United Airlines' frequent-flier program, that enables MileagePlus members to earn and use award miles in different ways.

MileagePlus members who register at bckstgr.com can use award miles to bid on experiences such as private dinners with celebrity chefs, backstage passes to sold-out concerts and rounds of golf at prestigious clubs. MileagePlus members can earn award miles by using social media, for example, by "liking" a partner product on Facebook, tweeting about it on Twitter or checking in on Foursquare at a partner location.